A Life-Changing Travel Award From Ferguson & Shamamian Architects
Third-year BFA student Xinrou Qiu won the inaugural Ferguson & Shamamian Travel Award for Cultural Discovery at NYSID, a $5,000 prize that enabled her to study Victorian and Edwardian design in the United Kingdom from June 27 to July 20, 2024. The award, created specifically for a NYSID interior design student, culminates in a year-long, paid internship at Ferguson & Shamamian Architects, which Qiu began in September. The award will be given annually, providing opportunities for future students.
Xinrou Qiu at Norney Grange
“Ferguson & Shamamian has supported the education of young architects and designers for many years. The firm first created F&S Prizes focused on recognizing final projects illustrating excellence in classical and traditional architecture,” says Stephen Chrisman, Partner of Ferguson & Shamamian. “Our founding partners began their architectural careers at the interior design firm of Parish-Hadley and built our firm on the premise that collaboration between architect and interior designer from the onset of a project is essential. With that in mind, we are very pleased to expand our educational support to NYSID, to support the education of interior designers and our future collaborators.”
As the first winner of the travel prize, Qiu visited London, Birmingham, Oxford, Manchester, Liverpool, and surrounding towns, visiting many interior spaces, architectural sites, churches, and museums. The sites included the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Tate Britain, Holy Trinity Church, Birmingham’s Historical Jewelry Quarter, The Museum of the Home, Exeter College, the University of Manchester, and much more. On Thursday, October 17, Qiu will present what she learned from her journey at the first Ferguson & Shamamian Student Prize Exhibition, with the recipients of two other scholarship prizes, in a celebration that will include Chrisman, principal Andrew Oyen, and several other F&S partners and principals, as well as NYSID President David Sprouls. We sat down with Qiu to explore what she learned and how this experience has changed her.
The application for this award involves an extensive proposal. What inspired you to apply and why did you focus on the United Kingdom?
It all starts with the NYSID Modern Architecture & Design course I took with Warren Ashworth last semester. Professor Ashworth is a member of the Victorian Society in America, an organization devoted to historic building preservation, and he told me about the Victorian summer school course in England. I really wanted to apply and go, and at the same time I thought I simply could not afford to. As a student who grew up in China, I didn’t have a close relationship with traditional Western architecture, and I wanted to understand more about it. I received a school email about the Ferguson & Shamamian Travel Prize opportunity, and I applied for the summer school program and the travel prize at the same time. I didn’t think I would get either opportunity as an undergraduate, especially since the Victorian Society in America programs are geared toward academics. But I guess God intended me to give this a try because I got accepted to summer school and I also won the prize.
Which interior had the biggest impact on you?
The Victoria and Albert Museum in South Kensington was my favorite museum, and it provided the groundwork for my understanding of Victorian design in England. It also showed me great art and design, including Pre-Raphaelite fine art, Arts and Crafts furniture, and interior decoration. I had the chance to see some of these masterpieces and the incredible collection in person, which was truly inspiring. The museum was built with funds from The Great Exhibition of 1851, an event that showcased Britain's industrial dominance and drew more than six million visitors. The interior that had the biggest impact on me was the cafe of The Victoria and Albert Museum, which consists of three rooms that show the Golden Age of Victorian style.
Each room of the cafe was created by a different artist and each required high-end techniques and hand craftsmanship that is rarely seen today. The Gamble Room, designed by James Gamble, is an opulent space, enveloped in a dazzling array of colorful ceramics, glass, and enamel. The walls and large columns of the room are adorned with vibrant ceramic tiles, known as “majolica” tiles, made from pottery decorated with colored lead glazes. The Poynter Room is a more utilitarian space that was intended for “broiling steaks and chops” on a cast iron range. Henry Cole, the founding director of the museum, commissioned the painter Edward J. Poynter to design the room and paint the space. Poynter enlisted female students from the National Art Training School to paint the room’s ceramic tiles with female figures at a time when public commissions for women were rare. The final room, the William Morris Room, absolutely stunned me when I entered it. William Morris was one of the leading figures of the Arts and Crafts movement in England. He took inspiration from natural forms and valued the use of honest materials and traditional craftsmanship. He collaborated with many other artists, including the architect Philip Webb, who designed wall panels with olive leaf motifs, and painter Edward Burne-Jones, who painted fruits and female figures on the panels for the room’s decoration. I think this room is a great example of the Arts and Crafts movement, showcasing the beauty of natural elements, art, design, and exceptional craftsmanship as a reaction against industrialized, machine-made designs.
Stained-glass panels depicting garland weavers, by Edward Burne-Jones at the Victoria and Albert Museum
What artist or craftsperson did you learn about who will influence your work?
There are two who will stick with me. First, there is the architect C.F.A Voysey. I went to a house he designed in 1897 called Noreney Grange in Shackleford. As one of the main leaders of the Arts and Crafts movement, Voysey took inspiration from classic interior elements but he simplified the style in residential spaces that really function. His thoughtful design throughout every room makes spaces elegant and comfortable in a way earlier Victorian interiors were not. Victorian interiors, distinguished by heavy ornamentation, were not necessarily comfortable. Voysey simplified the classical forms and made them more livable, comfortable, and personal down to his custom design of the door knobs, the wall register, and the tiles for the fireplace. The doorknobs (or rather, the key escutcheons) were heart-shaped! I found this attention to detail romantic.
Norney Grange designed by C.F.A Voysey
The second designer I took inspiration from was Charles Rennie Mackintosh. I went to see a Georgian house he remodeled in Northampton from 1916-1917. It’s one of the earliest examples of Art Deco design in England. The geometric, almost graphic, designs of the staircase panels, wallpapers, and fireplace all came from Mackintosh. At the time, people were still obsessed with heavy ornamentation and organic forms but Macintosh’s interior features sharp lines, strong contrasts, bold geometry, and a distinctive combination of black, white, and vibrant colors like yellow and blue. I could see the seeds of early Modern Design in this house. I was astonished by his innovation in historical context. . . New ideas form in reaction to what comes before.
Interior staircase design by Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Bedroom design by Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Your travel prize was intended for cultural discovery. What did you discover about the Victorian and Edwardian design of England that you will take into your work?
One thing I could see and feel in the design of England was the fact that it has been a diverse country and a Colonial Empire. In the period I studied, China was locked inside, and all of its references and traditions came from one source. But England took inspiration from so many other countries: you could see the influence of the French Gothic style, European classical style, many interior decorations from China, antiques from Asia, and tiles from Islamic and Middle Eastern cultures. As a Chinese who has lived in New York for nearly a decade, I take pride in my heritage of Chinese culture and design. However, I am eager to explore what lies beyond it. Seeing the fusion of cultures and the influences from all of the world work together in design was transformative for me. It opened the door to so many things I had never seen before that were right in front of me. As an interior designer, you must remain open-minded, be influenced by other cultures, and be open to other possibilities. My goal is to be creative all the time, and that means bringing all of the elements I have been exposed to to the table to meet the needs of a specific client, whether that person wants a Japanese-style home or an English Victorian. To truly innovate, I will need to get out of my comfort zone.
In addition to the $5000 travel stipend, your award involves a paid internship at Ferguson & Shamamian. Will you tell us about that?
The internship is weekly and I just started in September, about two weeks ago, so I have only been to the office twice so far. I talked to my supervisor, whose name is Priscilla Lugo, and she asked me what I hope to experience from the internship. I told her I wanted to come to site visits and be a part of a real project. She mentioned she would make sure I got to be part of every phase of a project. I felt so welcomed and cared for. I was greeted by everyone in the office. Truly, I was overwhelmed by the welcome.
Is there anything else you would like to discuss that I have not asked you about?
I‘d like to say I am super grateful for this opportunity because I know as an interior designer seeing different styles can make you more creative and adaptive.
My multicultural education will help strengthen me as a designer. The firsthand knowledge I gained of the Arts and Crafts interior and English culture is invaluable to me as a designer. This once-in-a-lifetime cultural travel experience has deepened my understanding of interior design
The F&S Travel Award for Cultural Discovery at NYSID will be offered in the coming year for summer of 2025 travel study. The next award will be announced in early 2025 with submissions due in early March. A note from NYSID’s Dean of Students Karen Higginbotham will go out to all eligible students.
NYSID works closely with architecture and design companies to help them customize scholarships and awards and invest in the future of design in a way that reinforces the firm’s principles. If you or your firm are interested in establishing and naming a scholarship or travel award at NYSID, please reach out to NYSID Director of Development Joy Cooper.